Today, Microsoft is making the first developer preview of Internet Explorer (IE) 9 at MIX2010. The developer preview is available for download now. Microsoft retools its browser with HTML5, accelerated graphics. There are lots of demo applications which are built in to test the Speed, HTML5 and Graphics Demos. IE9 has a new JavaScript engine, and it’s screaming fast, it beats Firefox 3.6 on SunSpide. Rounded corners show up well.

The IE 9 Platform Preview doesn’t include the IE 9 user interface; instead, it is the plumbing, specifically the new Microsoft JavaScript engine (which is codenamed “Chakra”) and the new graphics subsystem, coupled with a home page full of test sites. There’s no back button and no built-in security. It’s basically the IE 9 rendering engine and early developer tools.

A sample Flying images demo –

IE9 Preview and Chrome showing the same demo, check at the FPS difference –

HTML5 applications are a lot richer and demanding, in terms of graphics and speed than Ajax applications. Microsoft is planning to deliver a lot more preview builds of IE 9 before it hits beta. In fact, the team is committing to delivering an update every eight weeks, and to interact with developers via the Microsoft Connect feedback loop.

IE9 will not be available on Windows XP as IE9’s GPU-powered graphics take advantage of new technologies available in Windows 7 and back-ported only to Windows Vista.